Combination keyhole-guard.



UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFTCE CHARLES E. FLINDER, OFWASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

COMBINATION K EYHOL E-GUARD.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 660,295, dated October 23, 1900.

Application filed March 14, 1900. berial No. 8,659. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES E. FLINDER, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Washington, in the District of Columbia, have invented certain new and useful 1mprovements in Combination Keyhole-Guards, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an attachment for keyholes of locks in the form of a combination keyhole-guard which is secured in front of a lock the keyhole of which it'is desired to protect from access except by a person having knowledge of the combination which controls the proper manipulation of a disk which is shifted to expose or conceal the keyhole.

My improvement consists in novel features of construction hereinafter described and Claimed.

In order that my invention may be fully understood, I will proceed to describe it with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is an elevation of my improved combination keyhole-guard, showing it applied to a part of a door, in front of the keyhole of the lock thereof, the disk being shown in normal position, concealing the keyhole, in full lines and the position for exposing the keyhole in dotted lines. Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the same on the line 2 2, Figs. 1

and 3, looking in the direction of the arrows. Fig. 3 is a vertical sectionof the guard on the line 3 3, Fig. 2.

My keyhole-guard attachment comprises a case having a back plate 1 and aface-plate 2, being secured together in such a. manner as to leave a space between them, providing a chamber 3. The back plate 1 is formed with the inner part of a key-opening 4 and is readily attached to a door D,'in front of the keyhole of the door leading to the keyhole of the look, by meansof fastenings 5. The faceplate 2 is formed with the outer part of the key-opening 4 and with a maze having parallel longitudinal through passages or ways 6, 7, and 8, parallel transverse through passages or Ways 9 and 10, longitudinal blind passages or ways 11, 12, and 13, transverse blind passages or ways 14, 15, 16,17, and 18, and enlargements or circles 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, and 24, whereby the passages or ways are connected. The surface of this face-plate is divided by longitudinal parallel lines 25 and transverse parallel lines 26 into squares or sections 27, the longitudinal lines 25 being consecutively numbered by a row of numbers 28 from 1 to 18, located at the top and bottom of the face-plate, and the transverse lines by columns of letters 29 from a to g at the right and left, respectively.

30 is a slidable and rotatable disk or dial which is movable in front of the face-plate, so as to expose or conceal the key-opening of the keyhole. 'It is graduated by numbered designating points 31 from 1 to 16- and is secured to the face-plate 2 by means of a head 32, located in the chamber 3 and formed on a shank or neck 33, extending through the maze. The neck or shank 33 is oblong in cross-section and is adapted to be turned in the circles, so as to travel in the passages or ways, which are of sufficient width only to permit of the shank traveling therein when its broad sides are turned in line with the passages or Ways.

34 is a knob or handle whereby the disk or dial may be shifted.

- The shape or contour of the maze or the combination which controls the .proper movement of the disk'or dial being known only to the user, the knowledge of the correct operais withheld fromothers who are not authorized to operate the lock.

1 My keyhole-guard. is principally intended for the use of travelers, as it can be readilythelandlord has been granted.

To expose the keyhole in the arrangement of the disk or dial as shown in the present instance,where its shank is in the enlargement or circle 19 in line with the blind passages or Ways 14 15, 3 is the guide or point. The disk or dial is turned so as to bring the point 3 on the longitudinal line 13 13. This brings the oblong shank in line with the throughpassage or way 6. The disk or dial is pushed forward the transverse line q and its shank located in the enlargement or circle 20. The disk ordial is again turned so as to bring point 3 on the line is k, with the shank in line with the transverse through passage or way 9. The disk or dial is pushed to the left until its left edge tion of the disk or dial to expose the keyhole attached to any door after the permission of until the upper part of its periphery reachesreaches the line 4 4 and its shank is located in the enlargement or circle 21. Then the disk or dial is turned so as to bring the point 3 between lines 10 and 11 and its shank in line with the longitudinal through passage or way 7 and is pulled rearward until its lower periphery reaches line 0 c and its shank is located in the enlargement or circle 22. The disk or dial is now turned so as to bring the point 3 on the line i t' and its shank in line with the through passage or way 10, and the disk or dial is finally pushed to the left until it assumes the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, when the disk or dial is free of the key-opening and the latter is exposed. To return the disk or dial to normal position to again conceal the key-opening, the movement of the disk or dial is reversed. Any one not informed of the construction of the maze would meet with difficulty in endeavoring to follow the intricacies thereof, but after repeated manipulation of the disk or dial might at last ascertain the direction in which the through passages or ways extend. For this reason I provide. the blind passages or ways in connection with the through passages. or

ways, so that any unauthorized person may be misled by running the shank into these blind passages or ways, and thus preventing a sufficient knowledge of the construction of the maze to solve or gain the combination whereby the disk or dial can be successfully manipulated. It will be readily apparent that the form of maze employed in this connection may be modified, so as to render the manipulation of the disk or dial for exposing or concealing the keyhole of a look more or less elaborate, so that my invention is not restricted to the precise formation of maze shown.

Having thus described my invention, the following is what I claim as new therein and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. A keyholeguard comprising a plate formed with a maze, and a disk secured slidably on said plate and adapted to cover a keyhole and having a shank adapted to travel in the maze, the shifting of the disk in proper relation to the maze exposing or concealing the keyhole of the lock.

2. A keyhole-guard comprising a plate formed with a maze and adapted to be sethe outer part of the key-openin g, and a maze, and secured to the back plate, and a slidable disk having a shank adapted to travel in the having a keyhole, a face-plate formed with maze, and a head whereby the disk is secured to the face-plate; the shifting of the disk in proper relation to the maze exposing or concealing the keyhole of the lock.

4. A combination keyhole-guard comprising a face-plate formed with a maze, and having crossed lines dividing the surface into squares, and designating-marks associated with the lines, and a slidable disk having a shank adapted to travelin the maze, a head whereby it is secured to the face-plate, points on the surface of the disk, and designatingmarks associated with the points. I

5. A keyhole-guard comprising a face-plate formed with a maze having enlargements or circles, and a slidable disk having a shank oblong in cross-section and adapted to travel in the maze, and a head whereby the disk is secured to the face-plate.

6. A keyhole-guard comprisinga face-plate formed with a maze having blind passages or ways and adapted to be secured in front of a lock having a keyhole and a slidable disk havingashank, adapted to travel in the maze, and a head whereby the disk is secured to the face-plate.

7. A keyhole-guard com prising a back plate formed with a maze having parallel longitudinal and transverse through passages or ways, and blind passages or ways, and enlargements or circles connecting the through and blind passages or ways, and a slidable shank oblong in crosssection and adapted to travel in the maze, and a head whereby the disk is secured to the face-plate.

CHARLES E. FLINDER. Witnesses: H. S. KNIGHT,

BELLE F. WALL. 

